Avenue Q Comes to Stageworks Theatre in Tampa.
I received an email a few weeks ago from the powers that be at Stageworks Theatre in Tampa saying that they were looking for sponsors for their upcoming run of Avenue Q. Now, I receive many emails from Stageworks, but none garnered the type of instant reaction I had with this one. I couldn’t get my “Yes, sign me up!” response over to them fast enough!
What’s so special Avenue Q? Well, Sesame Street aired around the time I was born. I grew up loving The Muppet Movie and totally related to the fact that it’s “not easy being green”, as Kermit the Frog so aptly put it.
Not a Show for Kids
Avenue Q may have taken a page out of Sesame Street’s book, but this is definitely not your toddler’s street! Avenue Q has songs dealing with adult topics, such as how everyone is a little bit racist, homophobia, finding your purpose in life and even how common viewing pornography on the Internet is.
Now, before you cringe or write this post off, hear me out first. What I love about Avenue Q is that for a few hours, you get to laugh and enjoy the fact that none of us are perfect and are all going through our own things.
As the New York Theater Guide put it, “This clever cast of characters is ticking every box we might be struggling with in our own lives. Whether it be unemployment, being single or coming to terms with your sexuality, the chances are you will leave the theatre having completely identified with another human…or a puppet.”
The story brings up topics in a funny way that are so hard for many to talk about, like being gay. What if you were gay but feared and denied it publicly even to your best friends? What if your best friend was gay and you wanted to figure out a way to tell him or her that you were okay with it? What if you take a little pleasure in the misfortunes of others? Nobody is supposed to admit that! But it’s a real phenomenon, and Avenue Q even found the word and wrote a whole song about it!
And then there is racism. If you think a highly charged topic can’t be explored through comedy and music; guess again. Avenue Q pulls that one off too. And they touch on other sensitive topics as well.
Why I Love It
I was instantly hooked on the music. It’s like one of those CDs that you over-listened to when you were a kid to the point that you knew every lyric, nuance, pause, play on words, etc. The melodies and lyrics make me smile every time I hear them. Being a child who grew up in the 70’s and 80’s, I loved shows like Different Strokes with Gary Coleman who played Arnold. Funny enough, the superintendent of the building on Avenue Q is Gary Coleman, so the humor was spot-on for me!
Hope to See You There!
Overall, the show will prove to be a fun time, and if you live in the Tampa area and would love to join the staff of Rice Psychology and myself on May 19th, we would love to meet you and enjoy some downtime and laughs together.
You can purchase your tickets online here.
Special Note: This show is for adults and not suggested for younger children.
